8 Fantastic Eateries not to miss in Taipei

If you are one of my close friends, you would probably know how much I LOVE film editing. Therefore I decided to try some vlogging during the trip. Since I’m still a beginner in doing vlogs so…to be honest these aren’t the greatest footage, sorry :/. So for now, stick with this blog post! Let’s begin the Taipei series with 8 fantastic eateries that I went to with my family in the 5-day trip!

1. Fu Hang Soy Milk 阜杭豆漿

(03:49 in the video)

Opened in 1958, Fu Hang Soy Milk has always been famous for its excellent Taiwanese breakfast. It might not the healthiest breakfast, but they are definitely one of the most delicious. The queue for this place can get super long if you happen to come during peak hours (you can see that in my video), but the queue actually moves fairly quickly.

We ordered salty soy milk, normal soy milk, youtiao (fried doughnuts), and shaobing (sesame flatbread). Although it was my 5th visit to Taiwan, I’ve never seen salty soy milk before this trip, so I decided to give it a try. Despite the name being salty soy milk, it is way more than soy milk with salt. It is kind of like a salty version of tofu pudding (douhua/dau fu fa/豆腐花) with a lot of other ingredients such as dried shrimp, chopped youtiao, pepper, spring onion, pickles, and black vinegar. I really loved it, and I’ll definitely eat this again the next time I come to Taiwan! Eating shaobing or youtiao on its own might be a little too dry, so do indulge yourself in a bowl of salty soy milk or normal soy milk to balance it out. Best Taiwanese breakfast I’ve ever had!

FYI: it opens at 5:30am and closes at 12:30pm, so breakfast for dinner unfortunately does not work here, sorry.

2. Yongkang Beef Noodles 永康牛肉麵

Right after we got off the plane and put down our stuff in the hotel, we immediately rushed for Yongkang Beef Noodles. Why? BECAUSE IT IS JUST SOOO GOOD. Beef noodles should be on your ‘must eat’ list anyway, so you should definitely go for the best one! Opened for more than 40 years, Yongkang has always been famous for its beef noodles for locals and tourists. It is also on the CNN’s list of the top 10 beef noodles in Taipei. The beef brisket is super tender, noodles are chewy, and the spicy broth adds flavours to the dish without being too hot. It is just the best combination EVER. The non-spicy broth is sweet and goes really well with the beef and noodles as well without being bland. Again, this is a famous spot among tourists, so you might expect a queue. But I tell ya, it is totally worth it. Even writing about it now makes me salivating already…

3. Belle Époque 美好年代

If you are a fan of bubble tea, then you must try Belle Époque’s bubble tea pancakes. It is not just plain pancakes with pearls on top. The pancakes are tea-flavoured, with a tea-flavoured cream frosting and the pearls on top AND in between the pancake layers. Oh my. It was basically an edible version of a bubble tea. As a big fan of the beverage, I really liked these pancakes! The Oreo pancakes that the table next to us ordered looked pretty good as well.

4. Boîte de bijou 珠寶盒法式點心坊

(02:17 in the video)

I am really glad to have found this hidden gem! Boîte de bijou does really nice desserts and light meals, and there is a small bakery section as well. The seating area is also very nicely furbished. The patisserie is tucked away in a small alley, so it is nice and quiet. There’s a really calm and tranquil vibe as well.

The matcha fraisier I had was simply heaven in a mouth. The matcha and fresh strawberries are the perfect combination.

5. Man Zhe Die (Don’t tell dad) 瞞著爹

So apparently the story goes like this: the boss’ father is a respected businessman in southern Taiwan, so he did not have the guts to tell his dad about this restaurant up north here in Taipei. The restaurant turns out to be a great success, so I guess it is hard for his dad not to know about it now 🙂

For some reasons, you can always get good quality Japanese food in Taiwan with a relatively cheap price, and Man Zhe Die is no exception. They have 4 outlets in Taipei, each specialising in different parts of Japanese cuisine, and this one that we went specialises in Kaisendon (seafood rice). I forgot the exact name of the one I had, but it is some sort of mixed combo. There is one piece of sashimi of each kind of fish. It was the first time I found sea urchin delicious! I can vividly remember the first time I had sea urchin in Hong Kong. It had the taste of the ocean, aka super salty. But THIS sea urchin I had? IT WAS SWEET. I liked the texture of it as well! Not too mushy. Overall, this meal has completely changed my view on sashimi and in particular, sea urchin. I used to only eat salmon sashimi, but after this meal I would definitely try more other varieties of sashimi. Unfortunately…it is gonna cost more in Hong Kong (and most likely in London as well…)

6. Smoothie House 思慕昔

It is weird, but Smoothie House might not be famous for its smoothies, but AMAZING shaved ice. They have numerous flavours such as tiramisu and red bean & matcha, but my favourite so far is the one topped with mangoes. The mangoes they use belong to a special cultivar called Irwin, which is widely grown in Taiwan. It has a unique sweetness which distinct itself from other varieties. This place is always packed with people, but again, it was really worth the wait. Especially during the hot summer months, nothing beats a big bowl of shaved ice with great toppings. It immediately cools you down.

No. 15, Yongkang St, Da’an District, Taipei City, Taiwan 106

7. Chun Shui Tang 春水堂

The birthplace of the amazing bubble tea. Must not miss Chun Shui Tang if you’re visiting Taiwan for the first time (or the 10th time!). The tea has a subtle flavour and it is not too sweet, and the pearls are chewy. A cup of bubble tea from Chun Shui Tang is the solution to every problem. 😀 Oh. And if you missed the opportunity to get bubble tea at all throughout your trip like I did, they have an outlet at Taoyuan International Airport in terminal 2 as well!! Grabbing some bubble tea before flying home will never go wrong.

Various locations

8. Anywhere with good quality Japanese BBQ

(01:45 in video)

As I’ve said previously about Man Zhe Die, you can get good quality Japanese food with a relatively cheap price in Taiwan. For that reason, Japanese barbecue was on our to-do list (it was more like a to-eat list actually). We got really good quality wagyu and seafood. Calling all meat lovers out there – go to a Japanese BBQ restaurant when you visit Taiwan!

These 8 eateries will definitely ensure that your tummy will NEVER be empty during your journey in Taipei. Like Korea, these places would be 8 of the countless #foodporn and #foodgasm opportunities too! Although Taipei is famous for all the delicacies, there is much more than just food. So please stay tuned for an upcoming update on my favourite neighbourhoods in Taipei! <3